Considering that the film was bumped around from September to January due to a national tragedy, it would be nice to feel a little sorry for Ruben Fleischer’s Gangster Squad.  The period film, which casts Josh Brolin and Ryan Gosling as cops going against Mickey Cohen (Sean Penn) for control of Los Angeles, has a great cast and period setting.  On top of that, The Untouchables is a great film and it wouldn’t be the worst thing to see more films like it.  And yet, Gangster Squad is a total miss.  My review of the Blu-ray follows after the jump.

More new images from the set of the Marvel sequel Captain America: The Winter Soldier have surfaced online, this time giving us a look at Anthony Mackie in costume as Falcon.  While the character isn’t sporting wings in these particular photos, he does appear to be strung up on some sort of wire apparatus against a green screen, so the wings will likely be added in post-production.  Nevertheless, Mackie gives his best “I mean business” face while firing off a few rounds from his handguns.

Hit the jump to check out the images.  The film also stars Chris Evans, Scarlett Johansson, Sebastian Stan, Cobie Smulders, Georges St-Pierre, Frank Grillo, Hayley Atwell, Toby Jones, Emily VanCamp, Maximiliano Hernández, Robert Redford, and Samuel L. Jackson.  Captain America: The Winter Soldier opens on April 4, 2014.

Now playing in theaters is director Michael Bay’s fantastic dark comedy Pain & Gain.  The film is based on a crazy true story and stars Mark Wahlberg and Dwayne Johnson as two bodybuilders who get caught up in an extortion ring and kidnapping scheme that goes terribly wrong.  Pain and Gain also stars Anthony Mackie, Rebel Wilson,  Tony Shalhoub, Ed Harris, Rob Corddry, Ken Jeong, and Bar Paly.  For more on the film, watch some clips or the red-band trailer.

At the Miami press junket, I landed an exclusive interview with Anthony Mackie and Rob Corddry.  We talked about what it was like to work with Michael Bay, their reaction to finding out the story was based on real events, the great work by all the actors, and more.  Hit the jump to watch the interview and definitely check out Pain and Gain.  It’s absolutely worth seeing.

Entitlement is a central facet of the American Dream. If you work hard, you should be rewarded. We believe we live in a meritocracy despite all evidence to the contrary. In some walks of life, you can get out what you put in. It’s a truth in exercise, and it’s mostly been a truth for the films of Michael Bay. He is a director completely without subtlety and grace, and is one of the most financially successful directors in American history. His films are cinematic excess in their purest form; indifferent to story and character, they have disgustingly large budgets pumped in and grandiose spectacle pumped out. His new film, Pain & Gain, may not have the funds of his recent blockbusters, but it wholeheartedly shares the cocky and reckless spirit of his controversial oeuvre. Sympathetic to his meathead protagonists, Bay has crafted a picture that is energetic, fun, and almost too large for life.

Anthony Mackie‘s career has hit a meteoric rise since his breakthrough role in The Hurt Locker, and rightfully so.  He’s a terrific actor, and he’ll be playing his biggest role yet in Captain America: The Winter Soldier.  Mackie plays Falcon, a flying superhero who assists Captain America (Chris Evans), but like with most Marvel movies, details on the character are being kept tightly under wraps.

During an interview with Steve for Mackie’s new film, Pain & Gain, the actor did reveal a few details about how he joined the project, why he signed on, the physique the role requires, and more.  Hit the jump for what he had to say.  Captain America: The Winter Soldier opens on April 4, 2014.

Paramount Pictures has released the first two clips from director Michael Bay’s dark comedy Pain & Gain.  The film is based on a true story and stars Mark Wahlberg and Dwayne Johnson as two bodybuilders who get caught up in an extortion ring and kidnapping scheme that goes terribly wrong.  The first clip focuses more on the film’s humor than its flashy visuals, as we see Anthony Mackie’s bodybuilder character receiving questionable health care from a characteristically humorous Rebel Wilson.  The second clip shows the three of them trying to kidnap someone.

Hit the jump to watch the clips.  The film also stars Tony Shalhoub, Rob Corddry, and Bar Paly.  Pain & Gain opens on April 26th.

Paramount has released a bunch of new images for Pain & Gain.  Director Michael Bay turned up the saturation for the sun-soaked Miami setting, and it looks great, especially with the bulked-up stars Mark Wahlberg, Dwayne Johnson, and Anthony Mackie holding the frame.  They play “three personal trainers in 1990s Miami who, in pursuit of the American Dream, get caught up in a criminal enterprise that goes horribly wrong.”

Ed Harris, Tony Shalhoub, Rob Corddry, Rebel Wilson and Bar Paly also star.  Pain & Gain opens April 26.  See the images after the jump.

Marvel has sent out a press release announcing that filming has begun on Joe and Anthony Russo‘s Captain America: The Winter Soldier.  Few details about the film are known, but the press release provides a brief yet informative logline: “Captain America: The Winter Soldier will pick-up where Marvel’s The Avengers left off, as Steve Rogers (Chris Evans) struggles to embrace his role in the modern world and teams up with Natasha Romanoff (Scarlett Johansson), aka Black Widow, to battle a powerful yet shadowy enemy in present-day Washington, D.C.”  That’s a lot of new information, including the large role for Black Widow, and the setting, although we know there will be flashbacks to World War II.  Also, for those who don’t know, the “shadowy enemy” is the eponymous Winter Soldier, a.k.a. Bucky Barnes (Sebastian Stan).  The press release also confirms our earlier report that Hayley Atwell will return to play Peggy Carter.

Hit the jump to check out the full press release along with the first image, and click here for recently released concept art.  The film also stars Anthony Mackie, Cobie Smulders, Georges St-Pierre, Frank Grillo, Toby Jones, Emily VanCamp, Maximiliano Hernández, Robert Redford, and Samuel L. Jackson.  Captain America: The Winter Soldier opens on April 4, 2014.

Paramount Pictures has unveiled some new images and a couple of TV spots for director Michael Bay’s upcoming dark comedy Pain & Gain.  Based on a true story, the film stars Mark Wahlberg and Dwayne Johnson as two bodybuilders who get caught up in an extortion ring and kidnapping scheme that goes terribly wrong.  We recently got a look at a red-band trailer for the film that highlighted the pic’s more comedic aspects, and these images tease the characters played by Rebel Wilson and Ed Harris as well as inform us that Wahlberg and Johnson are indeed cool guys who don’t look at explosions.

Hit the jump to check out the images and TV spots.  The film also stars Anthony Mackie, Tony Shalhoub, Rob Corddry, and Bar Paly.  Pain & Gain opens on April 26th.

Before I dive into the main topic of this week’s opening paragraph, just a quick disclaimer that the Top 5 will be taking a week off next Saturday to accommodate the first, and perhaps only, trip to Hawaii I will ever take. Here’s to hoping it’s less awkward but equally as life-changing and Kristen Bell/Mila Kunis-filled as Forgetting Sarah Marshall depicted. That said, while it fell just short of the cut this week, I still want to draw attention to the first trailer for director Adam Wingard‘s You’re Next that debuted on Thursday. As a horror fan, I’m always excited when a new entry in the genre gets lauded from both sides of the aisle (horror fans and those who aren’t as giddy about movies that make them think twice about turning out the lights). As far as I’m concerned, August 23rd can’t get here soon enough.

All Hawaii and horror fanboy talk aside, this week’s list offers up the first trailer(s) for The Wolverine, interviews with Dwayne Johnson and more for G.I. Joe: Retaliation, the first trailer and posters for White House Down, a new red-band trailer for Pain & Gain, and The Host interviews with Saoirse Ronan and more. As you’re probably expecting, a brief recap and link to all of the above can be found after the jump.

A new red-band trailer and some images for director Michael Bay’s upcoming dark comedy Pain & Gain have been released online.  Based on a true story, the film stars Mark Wahlberg and Dwayne Johnson as two bodybuilders who get caught up in an extortion ring and kidnapping scheme that goes terribly wrong.  The main focus of this trailer is on the film’s humor, some of which is great (Rebel Wilson and Wahlberg’s closing rant are highlights), while other jokes seem a bit forced and are reminiscent of the more juvenile stuff in Bay’s Transformers franchise.  Nevertheless, I’m very excited about the prospect of Bay tackling this “small-scale” true crime story, and Wahlberg and Johnson look to make a great comedic pairing.

Hit the jump to watch the new red-band trailer and to check out the new images.  The film also stars Anthony Mackie, Rob Corddry, Ed Harris, and Tony Shalhoub.  Pain & Gain opens on April 26th.

Paramount has released a new TV spot for director Michael Bay’s incredibly promising black comedy Pain & Gain.  Based on a true story, the film stars Mark Wahlberg and Dwayne Johnson as two bodybuilders who get caught up in an extortion ring and kidnapping scheme that goes terribly wrong.  The film’s first trailer is fantastic, and this TV spot does a great job of showcasing that pic’s charm and comedy.  Pain & Gain looks like it could actually be Bay’s most entertaining film yet, but I have a feeling they’re keeping some of the story’s more sordid details under wraps.  The real life ordeal is fairly horrific, though I expect Wahlberg and Johnson will bring enough levity/ridiculousness to the film to make it palatable.

Hit the jump to watch the latest TV spot.  Anthony Mackie, Rob Corddry, Ed Harris, Tony Shalhoub, and Rebel Wilson co-star.  Pain & Gain opens April 26, 2013.

Back in July, we reported that Anthony Mackie would play the superhero Falcon (a.k.a. Sam Wilson) in Captain America: The Winter Soldier.  While details on the upcoming sequel are being kept highly under wraps, Mackie did provide some innocuous comments about the film while doing press for Gangster Squad.  His most interesting comment was the revelation that his character will share his comic book counterpart’s wings and ability to fly.  Mackie added, “I will be a superhero and fight people, namely The Winter Soldier.”

Hit the jump for more.  The film also stars Chris Evans, Sebastian Stan, Frank Grillo, Cobie Smulders, Scarlett Johansson, and Samuel L. Jackson.  Captain America: The Winter Soldier opens April 4, 2014.

It’s a bit disappointing that Ruben Fleischer‘s Gangster Squad can live in such a rich setting and still feel so light.  As seen through a grand tradition of films dating back over 70 years, post-war Los Angeles was boozy, hedonistic, dangerous, and dark.  Gangster Squad waters down this colorful world, and simply coasts on being an amusing, frivolous action film.  There’s nothing wrong with that, and with a strong cast at his disposal, Fleischer finds a nice blend between the style he brought to Zombieland and the spirit of the time period.  Unfortunately, a thin plot and even thinner characters make Gangster Squad as intense as a drive-by shooting and just as fleeting.

With the film set to hit theaters tomorrow, a final extended trailer for director Ruben Fleischer’s crime drama Gangster Squad has been released online.  It looks to be mostly made up of footage that we’ve seen before, but this is the most comprehensive look at the film we’ve been given thus far.  If you missed any of our recent coverage, be sure to check out Steve’s extended interview with star Josh Brolin and Christina’s coverage of the press conference that included Fleischer, Brolin, Ryan Gosling, and Emma Stone.  Look for more interviews over the next few days.

Hit the jump to watch the new trailer.  The film also stars Sean Penn, Nick Nolte, Anthony Mackie, Giovanni Ribisi, Michael Peña, Robert Patrick and Mireille Enos.  Gangster Squad opens on January 11th.